Michael Vick has been indicted by a federal grand jury in connection with the dogfighting probe of his property in Virginia.

The Falcons quarterback was indicted for conspiracy to traffic in interstate commerce in aid of unlawful activities and to sponsor a dog in an animal fighting venture in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District in Richmond, Va. Three others -- Purnell Peace, Quanis Phillips and Tony Taylor -- also were indicted by the grand jury on the same charges.

According to court documents filed by federal authorities earlier this month, dog fights have been sponsored by "Bad Newz Kennels" at the property since at least 2002. For the events, participants and dogs traveled from South Carolina, North Carolina, Maryland, New York, Texas and other states.

Members of the venture also knowingly transported, delivered and received dogs for animal fighting, the documents state.

Fifty-four pit bulls were recovered from the property during searches in April, along with a "rape stand," used to hold dogs in place for mating; an electric treadmill modified for dogs; and a bloodied piece of carpeting, the documents said.

The property was used as the "main staging area for housing and training the pit bulls involved in the dog fighting venture," according to the filings.

The documents said the fights usually occurred late at night or in the early morning and would last several hours. The winning dog would win from "hundreds up to thousands of dollars," and participants and spectators also would place bets on the fight.

Before fights, the participating dogs of the same sex would be weighed and bathed, according to the filings. Opposing dogs would be washed to remove any poison or narcotic placed on the dog's coat that could affect the other dog's performance. Sometimes participants would not feed a dog before the fight to "make it more hungry for the other dog," the documents said.

Fights would end when one dog died or with the surrender of the losing dog, which was sometimes put to death by drowning, strangulation, hanging, gun shot, electrocution or some other method, according to the documents. The property has an above-ground swimming pool, and investigators were seen looking into the pool Friday.

During a June search of the property, investigators uncovered the graves of seven pit bulls that were killed by members of "Bad Newz Kennels" following sessions to test whether dogs would be good fighters, the documents said.

Members of "Bad Newz Kennels" also sponsored and exhibited fights in other parts of Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Maryland, New Jersey and other states, the filings said.
On June 7, federal law enforcement officials descended on the property with a search warrant. More than a dozen vehicles went to the home early that day and investigators searched inside before turning their attention to the area where officials found dozens of dogs in late April and evidence that suggested the home was involved in a dogfighting operation.

Surry County officials had secured a search warrant in late May based on an informant's information to look for as many as 30 dog carcasses buried on the property. The warrant never was executed because Commonwealth's Attorney Gerald G. Poindexter said he had issues with the way it was worded.

The results of that search have remained sealed.

At the time, Poindexter expressed surprise at why the federal government was involved.

"What is foreign to me is the federal government getting into a dogfighting case," Poindexter said. "I know it's been done, but what's driving this? Is it this boy's celebrity? Would they have done this if it wasn't Michael Vick?"

A day later, "They launched a separate, independent federal investigation," Poindexter said of the government, which has had a representative involved in the local probe all along.

A search warrant affidavit said some of the dogs were in individual kennels and about 30 were tethered with "heavy logging-type chains" buried in the ground. The chains allowed the dogs to get close to each other, but not to have contact, one of myriad findings on the property that suggested a dogfighting operation.

Vick initially said he had no idea the property might have been used in a criminal enterprise and blamed family members for taking advantage of his generosity. He also put the house up for sale and reportedly sold it quickly, although there is no record that the sale has closed. Vick has since declined to talk about the investigation.

Well.....for them to do this they must have some solid evidence that he was involved. I really wish he wasn't.
I still don't see how ANYONE gets pleasure watching dogs rip each other apart. Thats just sickening.
If he is guilty, i hope he gets what he deserves. And his career will be gone with a guilty verdict, IF he is indeed guilty.
I hope they nail EVERYONE that was involved in this, and that they get some REAL prison time.

Don't celebrate yet GBP...........remember OJ Simpson. He murdered his ex wife and another man and got away with it.
So Vick might walk even if he is guilty.
I hope they get this case done quickly, so that the speculation can stop.

The Feds typically do not make a move unless they are confident they have the evidence to make their case. But mark my word, one of Vick's "boys" is gonna roll (or has already) on his *** to avoid jail time.

This punk is worse than an animal in that he finds joy in these beautiful, loving and loyal creatures maiming and killing one another...and of course he does his fair share of torturing/killing the dogs too! I hope he becomes a pass around love toy when he ends up in the clink. My money says the inmates are not going to treat him well...let us all hope that his new nickname is "Prison Bitch".

Just went to the Falcon's website and wrote an e-mail to Arthur Blank. I, and more than a dozen of my friends, do the vast majority of our home improvement shopping at Home Depot. While I routinely spend thousands a year, several of my friends are contractors who spend tens and hundreds of thousends of dollars annually. We have all agreed that if the Falcon's do not address Vick with the seriousness his punk *** deserves, convicted or not, we will be more than happy to spend our hard earned dollars at Menard's of Lowes. The power of the pocketbook, and his bottom line, my friends.

If you shop at Home Depot, and are as disgusted as I am with Vick's behavior, and the Falcon's lack of serious accountability for Vick after NUMEROUS on and off field incidents, then write Arthur Blank and express your concerns, and your ability to shop elsewhere. Rremember, this is a guy who flipped of his own fans for their expressed disappointment over his years long under-performing ways. Who sat face to face with Blank and lied about his involvement with dog fighting, and did the same with Roger Goodell. And let's not forget the stash bottle with marijuana residue in it.

I was wondering how many would make that Home Depot connection. When this first came out I thought of Blank right away.
Tony Stewart blasts one of his team mates, following week wins his first race of season, things are looking up, then BAM Vick Indicted.

If you shop at Home Depot, and are as disgusted as I am with Vick's behavior, and the Falcon's lack of serious accountability for Vick after NUMEROUS on and off field incidents, then write Arthur Blank and express your concerns, and your ability to shop elsewhere. Rremember, this is a guy who flipped of his own fans for their expressed disappointment over his years long under-performing ways. Who sat face to face with Blank and lied about his involvement with dog fighting, and did the same with Roger Goodell. And let's not forget the stash bottle with marijuana residue in it.

[align=left]Dog fights are common, unofficially, specially dog owners around my age. It´s instead of cuckfighting, people bet money on that a dog could win against another dog.´
It´s horrible and stupid to such thing, but i don´t think Vick will go to jail, or deserve to go there, but he should be suspended this season. Fines will not effect him but he will be marked for the rest of his career it will be probably hard for him to get to a new team in the future.[/align]

[align=left]Dog fights are common, unofficially, specially dog owners around my age. It´s instead of cuckfighting, people bet money on that a dog could win against another dog.´
It´s horrible and stupid to such thing, but i don´t think Vick will go to jail, or deserve to go there, but he should be suspended this season. Fines will not effect him but he will be marked for the rest of his career it will be probably hard for him to get to a new team in the future.[/align]

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You don't think extreme cruelty to animals is a valid reason for jail time?
I guess i will have to disagree with you. The only way to stop this kind of crap is to make the punishment serious enough to keep people from doing it. Prison just might do that.

it's sadistic. most of the dogs die anyway, win or lose, because after a fight they are pretty much shot either way. and they torture them, dismembering, electrocuting, strangling, hanging, drowning, and beating them to death. the feds dug up a mass grave in the woods behind the house, unearthing hundreds of dogs. it makes me nautious just thinking about it. whether or not he is convicted, i think it's in the best interest of the falcons and the league that he be released from the team and suspended for a LOOOONG time. what a sick sad affair.

it's sadistic. most of the dogs die anyway, win or lose, because after a fight they are pretty much shot either way. and they torture them, dismembering, electrocuting, strangling, hanging, drowning, and beating them to death. the feds dug up a mass grave in the woods behind the house, unearthing hundreds of dogs. it makes me nautious just thinking about it. whether or not he is convicted, i think it's in the best interest of the falcons and the league that he be released from the team and suspended for a LOOOONG time. what a sick sad affair.

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I agree Bozz.........these people get a sick thrill out of this kind of suffering.
I hope ALL involved get the FULL punishment they deserve!
Makes me wonder how long this was going on there.

[align=left]I think what his done is discusting, but if bullfighting is legal and some people enjoy then it´s not so strange that people like dogfigthing. But I don´t like either one of them. But Vick should get suspended his entire career, that is punishment enough.
Because if you don´t get to jail when you are beating someone up, then you sholdn´t get for this either, but you should[/align]

i don't know how the laws are in Sweden, but America is pretty serious about animal cruelty. It's not a matter of one being better or worse, just that our cultural atmosphere is such that even neglecting animals can get you serious jail-time. What Vick is doing is abusing and killing innocent animals, not to mention being caught up in a large illegal betting ring. Dog-fighting is a very serious crime in the united states.

[align=left]I think what his done is discusting, but if bullfighting is legal and some people enjoy then it´s not so strange that people like dogfigthing. But I don´t like either one of them. But Vick should get suspended his entire career, that is punishment enough.
Because if you don´t get to jail when you are beating someone up, then you sholdn´t get for this either, but you should[/align]

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Bullfighting isn't legal in the United States either. I think both practices are sick. Just my opinion of course.
And to me, if you beat someone up, you should get punished too. So there's no conflict as far as i am concerned. Throw them ALL in jail for their crimes.

[align=left]Dog fights are common, unofficially, specially dog owners around my age. It´s instead of cuckfighting, people bet money on that a dog could win against another dog.´
It´s horrible and stupid to such thing, but i don´t think Vick will go to jail, or deserve to go there, but he should be suspended this season. Fines will not effect him but he will be marked for the rest of his career it will be probably hard for him to get to a new team in the future.[/align]

Click to expand...

You don't think extreme cruelty to animals is a valid reason for jail time?
I guess i will have to disagree with you. The only way to stop this kind of crap is to make the punishment serious enough to keep people from doing it. Prison just might do that.

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don't get me wrong on that but do you really think ...let's say 5 years in prison is something that could keep people who are interested in dog fighting out of it ? unfortunately i doubt that...

i agree sebi. i think dogfighting is a lot like cold-blooded murder. sure, there are probably a few individuals who could be rehabilitated from that kind of thing, but most can/will not be, sorry to say.